OK, so after having power issues at a recent show (and thus not getting the last 30 minutes or so recorded... DOH!), I vowed to never let this happen again and finally picked up one of the RB-270 batteries off eBay and all the necessary adaptaplug hardware, and got everything working fine.

My question is... what's the best way to get this battery "conditioned"? I fully charged it right away when I got it (this was a few weeks ago, but I'm assuming it's still fully charged).

Do I need to run it down all the way to zero and then give it a full charge again?

Is there a preferred method of draining/charging to get maximum charge and long term best performance out of these things?

Acidjack - did you get the polarity thing figured out? The markings are a little hard to see - the important thing is to reverse only one connector (it doesn't matter which one).

Thanks Lee, that's what I was looking for. I figured there had to be some discussion here on TS, but my searches with "rb-270" and other specific terms were coming up with nothing, and the more generic ones were getting way too many results to sift through.

Interesting, because I always assumed it was best to fully drain these before recharching (WRONG!).

So it sounds like the "40%" rule applies right away, and since I'm probably at 80-90% right now, I should just record the show tomorrow and that would bring me down to a good level for storage.

You can also get two single adaptaplug female sockets and connect them together if you need a cable less than a foot long. The pigtails on this are about 5" long. Two of these are cheaper than the 6' cable linked above.

i went to a small town radio shack and found the adaptaplugs B & M but not the cable to go in between them. the lady told me the cable doesn't exist so I walked out of there scratching my head considering I saw it on RADIO SHACK'S WEBSITE EARLIER IN THE DAY.

I'll check locally later this week at radio shack...although Ted's power cable is very reasonably priced considering the b&m plugs are $7 each and the cable is another $9.5.

Logged

Advice is a form of nostalgia, dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it’s worth.

The 100WH is cleared to fly in carry-on luggage. The 132 WH battery needs "airline approval" according to the FAA. Many airlines clearly state that this one is OK, but others, you'll have to contact. I flew Aer Lingus with it and they just needed to know what flight I was on so the cabin crew was aware of it. If one of these lithium ion batteries (or a laptop) catches on fire, pour plain water on it. Sorry for the digression.

This battery also has 12V and 5V USB output which can all be run simultaneously - handy for charging your phone at the show.Others have voiced concern about the rocker on/off switch. I've never had it flip accidentally - just be mindful of it.